which telephoto lens to get?

toughgamer

As everyone knows, I just got my 550D with kit lens (18-55), and recently I bought the 50mm f1.8 'nifty fifty' and really really liked it (shot the baby photos with it at the babies' party burwood 2 wks ago). the only problem i have now is rather the focal length coverage - more than once I was in need of a longer one but alas, I only got 55mm max - I could have captured the cute girl's face in the football match but I ended up having the whole team of cheerleaders captured...

jokes aside, I've been researching a bit and found with limited budget (I have a family to feed and a mortgage to pay off), I could only choose amongst the following ones:
> tamron 18-270
> sigma 18-250
> canon 18-200 EFS
> canon 28-135 EF USM
> canon 17-85 EFS

Considering mine's a crop sensor with 1.6x factor, I am leaning towards 28-135mm, also after reading the reviews I've found it's got the best IQ out of all these (Dxo data), and the price is good too (I haven't got access to the bargain area yet but DWI has it for 350). The only thing is, I am not sure whether I need longer focal than 135 (or 216mm if we consider the 1.6x on the crop). I know 250.270 will be like 400mm or some, super long!

I will be mainly shooting portraits, sceneries and not much sports - maybe a bit of wild life. So do I need anything longer than 135mm? Does shooting a swan taking off from the lake in centennial park takes anything longer than 216mm? I really really appreciate if someone who has experienced any of these focal lengths could help answer the question.

Oh, and once my skills overtake the camera, I may consider upgrading to full frame, so maybe 28-135 EF is a better choice? But maybe that'll never happen (I suck a lot at photography ...). Should I bet on that?

Thanks a bunch!

dickson

兄弟， 要拍啦啦队美女先把预算提高10倍

WTFAUS

既然以后要升级全副，应该考虑 Canon 70-200mm f2.8L IS USM

toughgamer

I said I have a limited budget guys!!! >_<

toughgamer

原帖由 dickson 于 2010-8-16 15:08 发表
兄弟， 要拍啦啦队美女先把预算提高10倍

nikon D3s + Nikkor 300mm f/2.8 EDIF ?

WTFAUS

原帖由 toughgamer 于 2010-8-16 15:13 发表
I said I have a limited budget guys!!! >_<

dude, you can keep saving money or nagging your wife until you can have enough 'budget'.

toughgamer

but seriously guys, do u think i should by that 28-135, for starters? thanks :)

WTFAUS

If I had a canon, I'd go for a L lens

toughgamer

that costs a lot of monaaaaay! can't afford L glass for now - i dont shoot for a living...

WTFAUS

原帖由 toughgamer 于 2010-8-16 15:49 发表
that costs a lot of monaaaaay! can't afford L glass for now - i dont shoot for a living...

how much is 24-105mm USM L these days?

jmms_smmj

长焦，还需要便宜?
那就70-300mm IS吧，也就这个了，要是还觉得贵
就买75-300mm 那就只有2手的，不过便宜
lz列的镜头，要不然就是焦距太短，要不然就是成像很烂

jmms_smmj

28-135 EF 是个老得不行的狗头。。

kevinj

原帖由 toughgamer 于 2010-8-16 15:07 发表
As everyone knows, I just got my 550D with kit lens (18-55), and recently I bought the 50mm f1.8 'nifty fifty' and really really liked it (shot the baby photos with it at the babies' party burwood 2 w ...

I got a Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM lens wish to sell , let me know if you interested.

toughgamer

原帖由 kevinj 于 2010-8-16 19:13 发表


I got a Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM lens wish to sell , let me know if you interested.

I would like to know the reason first

Anyway, I think I'll get the EF 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5 USM - It's got pretty good IQ with an ok range (not terribly long but I don't think I'm ready to take big canons out yet).

Moh

If you haven’t got good lenses, you will not be able to retain images in the way that you wanted it to be.
This is especially true for babies shooters where there are no second chances!
Let your wife understand that your baby worth more than any L lenses available in the market.
Once again, the choice is yours!

kevinj

原帖由 toughgamer 于 2010-8-16 21:29 发表

I would like to know the reason first

Anyway, I think I'll get the EF 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5 USM - It's got pretty good IQ with an ok range (not terribly long but I don't think I'm ready to take big c ...

Sell it to get some cash for Canon L series lens is the only reason.

yeu008

我看过的一本书里，提到体育摄影的时候，画了一箱子美钞。。。

toughgamer

oh man, after an exhaustive research over the array of lenses, i think i better off getting the 70-300 usm is for telephoto, and save up a bit on wide angle - 'one lens does it all' simply doesn't work... besides, i'm pretty fast in switching lenses

cornerstone

I Play with Tamron 18-270 before when you start zoom from 70mm a bit stiff but overall quite a good len. Maybe you can try the sigma len at retail shop to feel of it, i think sigma build quality still better than Tamron.

Here is my some test for Tamron len.
http://www.oursteps.com.au/bbs/v ... amp;extra=page%3D14

toughgamer

image quality - it is rather a subjective thing isnt it? some reviews say the old cheapo kit 50-250mm IS has better IQ than the 70-300mm... i m soooo confused.

cornerstone

Just go within your budget... i know a lot of people recommended original lenses (not agains anyone here). At the end we only print out 4R can't really notice and got family to feed :)